//------------------------------// // Horseless Carriage // Story: Road Trip // by fore shadow //------------------------------// “What is this contraption?” The young colt walked around the device taking in its wheels and lack of harness or pulley system. “I’ve been told it’s called a pony-less carriage.” The old mage responded with no lack of pride in his voice. “It operates completely by machine power.” The younger one eyed him warily, but Starswirl ignored the look completely and continued to explain. “We get inside through here,” opening the hatch he demonstrated by climbing the now-visible stairs and seated himself at the helm. “From this position we can see what’s coming in front of us. We operate the machinery through the use of these levers and this turning device.” Climbing up tentatively, the young Sombra gazed around at the insides of the contraption. “Is it safe?” “Of course,” Starswirl pushes the starter and the horseless carriage leapt forward alarmingly causing both ponies to grab at anything around them in panic. The unicorn quickly realized his error though and slammed his hoof down onto the brake. “Just takes a little practice is all. I’m sure to get the hang of it. First time’s the charm.” “You mean you’ve never operated one before?!!??” The colt’s panicked grip tightened considerably on the console. “I hadn’t the need before. A friend delivered it here for me. But there’s a first time for everything, my boy. Besides, there’s not much to do. It is a pony-less carriage after all.” Smiling to himself he removed his hoof from the braking device, slowly easing the carriage back into motion. Soon they were smoothly rolling along the path heading toward their destination. After a few minutes of tense silence, Sombra began to relax… a little. The fact that they had not crashed eased his mind. He still held onto the console, just not in a death grip. After a few more minutes, he thought of something. “You know...” he paused for dramatics, easily capturing the older unicorn’s attention. “It actually isn’t.” “Isn’t what?” “A pony-less carriage.” “Yes, it is.” “No, it isn’t.” “It is. I have been informed that it is by one of the most trustworthy ponies in the kingdom.” The unicorn huffed in irritation. The young imp was undeterred and smiled cheekily. “Then how do you explain us?” “Us... what are you on about?” The boy let out a hearty laugh. “It’s pretty elementary. I mean how can you call it pony-less when there are two ponies inside?” Continuing to laugh merrily at the joke, Sombra sat back and gazed out the window. All concern having left his small frame. Starswirl grumbled in response. Under his breath, he spoke to himself, “really? Of all things funny, that’s what you come out with?” “It’s ok, Starswirl.” Sombra chuckled. “Not everyone appreciates humor. Perhaps you will understand one day why something is funny.” The unicorn groaned. After a few minutes though his grumbles turned to chuckles, which eventually led to a full belly laugh. Joining in, the two ponies laughed until they had tears running down their faces. Gradually the laughter faded into a companionable silence. Noting how their congeniality continued despite the quiet, Starswirl once again was amazed by the transformation in his counterpart. Perhaps this would work after all... —- The trip itself took far less time than either anticipated, not that Sombra really had any basis for estimation. But it was approaching dark when they rolled to a stop in the center of a flat wide-open canyon. The place was just as Starswirl had described: a large flat expanse, surrounded on all sides by ragged mountains jutting up miles into the sky. It was barren save for a few tumbleweeds and a scattering of pebbles. Stepping down from the horseless carriage, the small earth pony scanned the area around him, his eyes drawn up to the heavens. While the sun had not yet set, glimpses of the stars shone behind the twilit sky. All the colors of the rainbow spread out across the sky and reflected off of the clay hued rocks surrounding them. “Whoa,” the foal managed, finally understanding the meaning of the strange expression. “Whoa, indeed,” the unicorn agreed in a huff as he dropped down from the horseless carriage and stretched his aching joints. “Now there won’t be much light soon, so we best get these items unloaded.” Using his magic, he lowered the back hatch revealing several large rectangular shapes that were covered by tarps and tied in place to the sides of the interior of the back of the vehicle. Sombra tilted his head to the side and stared at the contents wracking his brain to figure out why they felt so familiar. It was almost like they were calling to him. Unbeknownst to him, his eyes began to glow an ominous vibrant green color. “Are you going to help or not?” Starswirl gruffed, with a bit more force than intended, but the glowing eyes frightened him. The glow faded as the small pony nodded quietly. He was uncertain as to how he was meant to help, until he walked up the ramp the unicorn had just lowered from the back of the interior. At the base of the covered shapes, Sombra glimpsed rollers, and deduced that he was meant to wheel these down the ramp. Getting right to work, he and the older unicorn untied each item. Sombra would wheel it down out of the carriage and onto the flat ground below while Starswirl kept it steady with his magic. While there was not much wind, the shapes themselves were quite wobbly and the older mage was not taking any chances. Once they had been unloaded, Starswirl directed Sombra in the placement of the large rectangular shaped items. There were six of them. They towered over the small pony at thrice his withers and spread out on either side of him at double his chest span. He arranged them in a circle as the older unicorn directed, not stopping or complaining until the mage was satisfied entirely. Dropping spent to the ground in a heap, he sat panting and sweating to the side of his creation. Starswirl was running calculations under his breath in between examining the heavens. The stars were now out in full force and with no lights from any cities to dim them they exploded in the sky above. Sombra sat watching them in utter awe while his heart slowed and his breathing calmed. He had no knowledge of how much time passed, lost as he was in his gazing, so he was surprised when the older unicorn spoke. “It’s almost time.” The worlds fell solemnly around them in the quiet of the crater. The young pony took a deep steadying breath and spoke. “What would you have me do?” The words came out much calmer than he anticipated. There was a lot of inner struggle accompanying them, but his voice was steady. “Enter the circle and sit at its center.” Starswirl directed. The earth pony rose and walked to the edge of the objects. Right before entering, however, he paused. Flashes of the cavern in the mountain and his former body lifted in frozen repose reminded him of the last time he had been in a circle of magic. Turning to look at the unicorn, he questioned him one last time. “What will happen?” The mage tilted his head and gazed at his young charge, “That will depend on you, Sombra.” The name was spoken with the same gentleness with which he had been addressing the colt. “Like all things in life there is a choice to be made. The evil that lurks inside of you will be given the chance to depart this world.” The small pony flinched at the reminder of his true self. So, he must leave, there was no other choice. “But the good left in you, that good can choose to remain here.” “The good in me? But…” the earth pony trailed off staring and pawing at the ground, hesitating to finish the thought. “Yes?” the unicorn urged gently. “What if there is no good left.” The question barely registered over a whisper, but the old mage still heard and answered. “I think the answer to that might surprise both of us.” Sombra looked up into the kind eyes and felt something clench in his chest. A feeling that he had long thought dead within himself. Hope. Taking another deep breath, he immediately turned, before he could lose his courage, and entered the circle. Making it to the center, his knees gave way and he sat on the earth facing away from the gray unicorn and the hope he represented. Starswirl for his part, dried his eyes quietly. Lighting his horn, the remaining ties and the tarps were lifted and sent flying, likely back to the carriage. But Sombra wasn’t paying attention to them. His mind now registered what had been surrounding him. “Mirrors!” he spoke into the quiet. Examining them, he noticed strange runes carved around the edges of each one. In the center at the base of the frames there was a larger carving. Looking at the mirrors, Sombra realized that one had the carving of a flower, another a hammer, a third a shield. He would have examined the rest, but his eyes were drawn toward the mirrors. They had begun to glow. In fact, Starswirl had begun chanting and sending magic through the mirror frames, connecting them with a multicolored beam of magic while monitoring the heavens. The planets were aligning above them just as the old unicorn had predicted. Their convergence was opening the bridge between the worlds. But Sombra was oblivious to all of this. Instead his focus was on the mirrors around him, which had begun to spin, forming one large mirror vortex. And it called to him. The wind whipped through his mane and he squinted against it as a presence began to solidify in front of him. An ominous laugh echoed from somewhere beyond the mirror sending goose bumps up the small pony’s back. Two glowing green orbs appeared opening to reveal red elliptical pupils. Sharp fangs formed underneath. It was surreal seeing his form through the mirrors. King Sombra in the mirror laughed. “What is this magic?” Lifting a hoof, he tapped on the mirrored surface in front of him. It was solid and seemingly impenetrable. Activating his magic, he tried to push through that way, but to no avail. “It’s a portal, between worlds.” The colt Sombra explained. The mirror King glared at the tiny pony as if noticing it for the first time. He sneered, but then sensed something, a darkness with which he was already quite familiar. “I am you,” the former childlike voice of the small earth pony had vanished and in its place was the voice of the true Sombra, “from another dimension.” “A colt?” the mirror king scoffed. “This shape allowed me to bridge this gap. I can join you, make you stronger, enhance your power.” The colt’s eyes had once again begun to glow. Sensing the evil through the mirror, the darkness inside rose to the surface and overwhelmed the innocence that had begun to flourish in the young pony. The evil wanted nothing more than to leave this weak vessel behind and it sensed the power in this mirror Sombra. And it knew how to negotiate with itself. “Grow my power, interesting, and what do you require in return for this exchange?” the King laughed haughtily. “I come through the mirror and join you,” the colt explained, “and any good left in you, well you release that weakness and let it come through the mirror to enter this vessel.” “Good?! Ha! There is no good in me!” King Sombra in the mirror laughed. “Then there is nothing to lose in this trade.” The colt replied stoically. “But if there was, any lingering goodness, suppressed in some dark corner, taking up space that I could instead fill with more power, wouldn’t it be worth giving that up?” The lack of humor in the response gave the King pause. There was no way that he would admit to anyone, even this small colt, that there might be some residual goodness left somewhere inside of him, but the thought of being able to absolve himself of any such possibility was not something he would deny. Especially, if it allowed him to consumer more power. “And after I consume your power. What is to stop me from coming through the mirror and taking over this dimension of yours.” The young Sombra knew that he himself would never admit a potential goodness inside him, that would be tantamount to weakness. So, it did not faze him that the mirror King ignored his questions. He also knew he had peaked the King’s interest. Tilting his head as if considering the King’s question, and knowing his answer would solidify this exchange, the colt smiled sinisterly, “Nothing.” “This deal is getting better and better,” The mirror King laughed, “Alright, I accept your offer. How do we manage this exchange?” Lifting his hoof to elucidate the point, he tapped the hardened surface. “While can’t make the exchange in our physical forms, we can leave these vessels and make the exchange that way.” With that statement, the darkness and evil that were King Sombra rose like a dark cloud up above the earth pony vessel and hovered there. Within the black smoke a smaller concentrated area shone out in a brilliant dark blue. The King Sombra in the mirror sneered at the sight of the blue in the smoke, but he refused to be outdone by the bravery of a mere colt. Casting a spell with his horn, a similar cloud rose up above his body. It contained far less of the brilliant blue hue. As if on some unspoken cue, the two vapor clouds hurled themselves at the mirror. When they hit, a brilliant explosion shot out from the center of the circle and radiated miles into the sky, blinding everything in the surroundings. The frames crashed to the ground and the mirrors shattered, bursting into dust. Across the mountains, in a deep cave, the prior form of Sombra evaporated into smoke and the circle that had been cast lost the need for its magic and dissipated. A deep silence descended in the crater. ---- Starswirl blinked repeatedly, slowly regaining his vision. His first realization was that he was covered in dust particles from the exploded mirrors. His second realization was that a small earth pony form was laying still on the ground in the center of that explosion. Heart leaping into his throat, the unicorn ran to the tiny pony. Using his magic, he cleaned the foal off. Leaning his head down, he nudged the form. Nothing happened. Swallowing dryly, he leant down and nudged again. Nothing. Weakness in his back legs caused the older pony to flow down. He felt tears form in his eyes. How had he been so foolish? The old unicorn began to cry in earnest. Sobs shook his shoulders. He felt so lost. When he felt the embrace of two small legs circling his neck, he wrapped his own forelegs around the other pony grateful for the comfort. It took him a few moments before it dawned on him that only one other pony would be there to do that. Pulling back in shock, his eyes widened. The small earth pony pulled back at the same time and eyed Starswirl gently. His hair was now a brilliant blue color and his eyes a flat sage green. “It worked.” Starswirl gaped like a fish, mouth opening and closing. “Sombra?” The colt’s smile broadened into a huge grin. “Yes, yes, I … I feel like me again. But not just me. Some of the Sombra from that world came through too. I have his memories. I remember you.” The unicorn jumped up throwing the small foal into the air with his forelegs and catching him. The two began to laugh and dance and chase each other about, until they fell in a heap on top of each other to catch their breaths. “I can’t believe it worked. I mean I can, but I can’t.” The unicorn shook his head as if to emphasize how hard of a time he was having with this. “You brought me back.” The little pony replied. “I don’t know how to repay you. I could never thank you enough.” “Thanks are not needed, nor is repayment. This is what you do for friends.” The mage replied. “You did it with the mirrors… that’s how you visited my world before… through the mirrors.” With a gasp, the small pony’s eyes widened in fright. “The instability of the worlds! What have we done?! We could…” Starswirl interrupted, placing a hoof on the colt’s face. “No need to fear young foal. I’ve done my research. By transferring all the bad there and what good was left inside of you here, we have balanced the two planes of existence. I fixed the magic so no bad could come back through and no good could go back there. Then the magic sealed the passage between forever.” “Isn’t it wrong to send more evil into that dimension?” the colt questioned, still feeling residual guilt. “Perhaps.” The mage nodded, “But I did send a few impairments of my own.” With a smug smile, he thought he felt a scream of rage somewhere in a dimension far, far away. “Let’s just say you don’t need to worry about that dimension anymore.” Taking a deep breath, the little pony rolled onto his back and stared up at the stars. “So, now what?” “Well, I suppose, we clean ourselves up, head back to Equestria, and maybe go see your old friend.” “My … old … friend…” the little pony sat upright. A visual of white elegance capped with a rainbow main blurred his thoughts. “Celestia.” It wasn’t a question, but a statement. “What on earth will I tell her?”